


Dreaming of Trust and Memories

by Silmarwen



Series: Dimiclaude Week 2020 [1]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Claude Background Spoilers, Cuddling, DimiClaudeWeek2020, Dreams, Established Relationship, Joint Azure Moon and Verdant Wind route, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Nightmares, Post-War, implied canonical racism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-01-02
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:29:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21946618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silmarwen/pseuds/Silmarwen
Summary: A dream of the past, twisted into something different from how things happened, Dimitri remembers when he was lost in his desire for revenge.Dimiclaude Week Day 1: Trust/Dreams
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Claude von Riegan
Series: Dimiclaude Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1589623
Comments: 10
Kudos: 93





	Dreaming of Trust and Memories

Dimitri remembers being lost, his ghosts screaming at him to get revenge, to kill those who killed them. Kill. Kill. **Kill.** Their screams are all he can hear. With beast-like claws he curls in on himself, covering his ears, trying to hide from everything in the pitch-black darkness.

Eventually amongst the shouts of the dead, a new voice seeps in. Honeyed words full of sweet promises, full of lies, lies, **lies.** Their overly sugar-coated lies don’t interest Dimitri, calling him _Your Princeliness_ constantly, a grey shadow among his ghosts. He roars at them to leave before the darkness overtakes everything again.

They just keep coming back, back, **back.** Keeps sputtering sweet nothings and empty words to him. Each time he roars back, threatening death. He’ll get his revenge, for the dead, doesn’t need anyone else to get in the way. He will have _her_ head, and sometimes he wants the voice’s head too. Each time he tries to slice at them with his claws, they vanish.

He doesn’t know how long this goes on for, it doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is his revenge. He hunts for _her_ all the time, but the darkness is a maze, he can never find his way. Why? He needs revenge for the dead. Why? Why? **Why?**

Instead the maze just keeps leading him to the voice. Sometimes a face starts to form for the voice’s grey shadow, but they vanish before he’s able recall who that face belongs to.

Then the voice returns one day in the darkness, but they’re silent, an eerie glow catching Dimitri’s attention instead of sweet worded lies. He doesn’t turn, he won’t give them the attention they want. “Why do you keep disturbing my revenge?” He growls, sharpening his claws, considering trying to attack them again.

“Dimitri,” Their voice, serious, worried, completely foreign to his ears, a name he doesn’t even remember the last time they referred to him as such. “Do you trust me?” He knows this voice. He’s never heard him sound so serious like this. He’s so used to him sounding playful, calling him one of those silly nicknames that made him feel human, not the prince busy seeking revenge. Slowly he turns around to the one lighting up the darkness.

Claude glows before him, antlers jutting from his head as he stares at the lost prince, concerned. His vibrant green eyes freeze him to the spot.

Claude extends his hand to him, an offer, _help, help, **help**_. Around them, the darkness slips, the crumbling interior of the Goddess tower shaping, as if reality is returning to its own senses. He can hear his ghosts cursing, spitting, screaming to return to the darkness, but Claude’s worried eyes feel, true, oh so real, real, **real**. Like an end to a nightmare.

Suddenly he’s overwhelmed by a feeling of cold, a numbness, and so tired. Claude’s offered hand seems so inviting. He remembers being told long ago, “You should never trust Claude von Riegan.” He was an outsider, too unknown, trouble, a liar. Never worth your trust, never, never, **never.**

Dimitri knew better though. Claude played tricks, pranks, poisoned food to win mock battles, but he was never untrustworthy. Dimitri always knew he could trust him, can trust him, he’s never regretted trusting Claude in the past, why would that change now when he needs someone’s comforting hand the most.

In a moment of clarity, he reaches out for Claude’s offered hand. He doesn’t look into his eyes, distracted by the screaming ghosts who are cursing him for abandoning them, for trusting the scheming deer. “No, I can trust him. I know I can.”

“Dimitri.” There’s a wavering sound in Claude’s voice which pulls his eye to him and he finds himself trapped in the look on the Alliance leader’s face. As if he’s not used to being given the trust of another, not expecting him to defend his choice to his ghosts. Slowly, it shifts to a smile that glows as Dimitri feels his exhaustion take over, everything fading to black. He can feel arms hold him as everything goes numb and all he feels is warm, warm, **warm**.

* * *

Sunlight filters in through the window of his bed chambers, rousing him from his strange dream, a memory warped into something different. It looks to be a bright sunny morning in Fhirdiad. He smiles down at the weight on his chest, Claude sleeping peacefully.

He recalls his dream, a hazy memory of when Claude saved him, from himself, from his ghosts, from being alone after five years on the run. A lazy smile creeps on his face as he slowly blinks the sleep from his eye, reaching down to brush some of Claude’s hair out of his face, then moving to caressing his jaw slowly with his thumb. He wants to commit moments like these to memory for when they’re apart.

Claude lets out a low grumble, nuzzling into Dimitri’s chest as he tries to sleep just a little longer. The Fódlan King cannot blame him. The last week has been long discussions into the evenings over international treaties, dealing with squabbling nobles and complex politics between Fódlan and Almyra. It’s only at night they can spend any time together. Nights of cuddling, relaxing, holding each other and more. They indulge and grasp at every waking chance together where they can just be themselves, without their titles weighing them down. After all, Claude must return to Almyra soon, and they will be parted for some time as they were before.

Because of this, Dimitri doesn’t rush to wake the sleeping King on his chest. It’s one of their rare free days, no plans to attend to, where they can just relax. There will be whispers in the halls of course, but they’ve been around since Claude started spending his evenings in Dimitri’s bedchambers instead of the guest room prepared for him after his first few trips.

There are still people who whisper that the Almyran King cannot be trusted. He keeps too many secrets, he’s too close to Fódlan’s King. A risk, he’s only using him, liar, schemer. There are people who still don’t trust him, who whisper behind his back. Dimitri loathes them, but he cannot get violent, it would only make things worse for everything. He’s still determined to prove them wrong, through helping Claude change the world for the better.

A grunt brings him from his thoughts, Claude starting to wake, glancing up at Dimitri as he lets out a small yawn. “Morning.” He mutters, cuddling closer as a shiver shakes his frame. Claude still can’t handle the Faerghus cold.

“Morning Claude.” Dimitri greets him, nuzzling the crown of his head.

“Someone’s really happy this morning. Good dream?” He grins back at him, relaxed, lazy and soft. Slowly Claude’s been learning to drop his guard, let down the walls he’s built up when it’s just the two of them. 

“I had a dream, about when you saved me in the Goddess Tower.” He hums, wrapping his arms around Claude’s body to help warm him. “It reminded me about how much you’ve helped me in the past. How much I trust you, about how I will always trust you.” The expression that graces Claude’s face as he speaks is mesmerizing. Mouth open in surprise, blush slowly creeping up his cheeks and eyes dazzling as he listens to Dimitri’s honest words. 

He pulls him in closer before his frame starts trembling, tears threatening to fall. Claude never seems to be able to handle it when Dimitri tells him his honest feelings, choking up as if he believed he’d never experience such trust in his life. Never expecting to receive all the love Dimitri offers him willingly, every single time.

Slowly Claude positions his face in the crook of Dimitri’s neck as he starts to sob, feeling safe enough to let his emotions overtake him as he Dimitri whispers to him about how much he means to him, how important he is, soothing the Almyran King who deserves all his trust and more.

**Author's Note:**

> First Dimiclaude week fic, and the shortest one. 
> 
> Also Claude sleeping on Dimitri's chest, canon. You can't change my mind.


End file.
